Beginners
by DearLadyDisdain
Summary: The new adventures of Rose and the Metacrisis Doctor, because we're all just beginners at love. "May you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days. And out of that love, remake a world." Rating may go up to T in later chapters.


Title: Beginners  
>Categories: Romance<br>Characters: Rose/10th Duplicate  
>Summary: "May you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days. And out of that love, remake a world." The new adventures of Rose &amp; the Metacrisis Doctor.<br>Chapter: For Lovers Only

A/N: This is still going through revisions, I just had to get it out of my system and post it before I went away for a week. I own nothing. Don't sue.

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><p>She didn't stop holding his hand until they had to change for bed.<p>

She held his hand in silence as they watched the TARDIS disappear, they held hands through the entire zeppelin ride that Pete had arranged take them back to London, and they held hands during the car trip to Rose's, all the way up to what would be their flat.

_Their flat_. Rose hadn't quite accepted the fact that after all of her efforts, the man she had searched for across all of time and space was hanging onto her just as dearly as she was clinging to him. They'd barely said two words to each other since they were dropped off at Bad Wolf Bay, and had slept for much of their journey, never letting go of the other's hand. Yet here they were – clinging to the skin of the earth, together at last. They held hands as she led him up the stairs and over the threshold of their flat.

They stood together, gazing at the modest flat that now belonged to both of them. Rose planted a light kiss on his lips and said, "Home, sweet home, Doctor."

"Rose," he said, fixing her in a serious gaze, "I don't want to rush you into anything. I can sleep in the living room or get a hotel if you're not ready to…"

He trailed off as Rose stared him down. "Doctor, let's get one thing straight. After saying goodbye on the beach that day, ripping holes across universes and nearly dying several times just to find you, the last thing I'm going to do is let you out of my sight, much less my room." After a pregnant pause, Rose added, "I have been ready since the day you took my hand in that shop basement and told me to run." She led him by the hand through her tiny kitchen and into her bedroom.

After digging around her small closet for sweatpants and a shirt for the Doctor, they stood staring at each other, uneasy about what to do next.

They burst into uncontrollable laughter – at themselves (each holding pajamas and unsure of who should change, and where), their situation, the improbability of it all, and the relief of being together at last. They fell on what was now their bed in fits of giggles until each hiccupped themselves back to sobriety. Rose spoke first.

"Considering the fact that we just piloted the Earth back to its solar system, I think we're good enough to change in front of each other."

The Doctor grinned. "I couldn't agree more."

They each stole glances while the other disrobed, but neither acted. They were once again clothed and standing on opposite sides of the bed. The Doctor moved first and sat on the bed facing Rose. She followed suit.

They smiled at each other again. Neither could really quite believe that the other was really in front of the other. They kissed lightly and awkwardly at first. Rose unfolded her legs and wrapped them around the Doctor's hips, sitting on top of him. They explored each other, as if to verify that they weren't trapped in a dream – that they were indeed awake and very much alive. Shirts suddenly became unnecessary and cumbersome.

"Hm…" muttered Rose as she kissed his neck.

"What? Something wrong?" asked the Doctor, pulling away slightly.

Rose smiled. "No, not at all. I just found that you've got freckles in more than one place."

"Oh yes," said the Doctor with a wolfish grin, "they're everywhere, really."

Rose murmured her agreement as the Doctor trailed kisses down her chest, stopping only once he reached her navel. They were both exhausted from battle, from travel, from anxiety. They leaned against each other and Rose began to cry.

"I'm sorry," she managed to get out in between sobs. "It's just… I thought I'd lost you forever. That I'd come all that way only to watch you die…" She looked up to see tears on the Doctor's face as well.

"Rose…" he whispered as he ran his fingers through her hair. "Oh Rose…" He savored the taste of her name on his lips, the sound of every letter. "I lost you once. Nothing – Cybermen, Daleks, or death – could have kept me from you."

They kissed with as much force as was physically possible. They kissed to make up for their time apart, all the time they had wasted, and to spite all of time itself. They fell into the bed and wrapped themselves around each other in celebration. It was only after what seemed like several days that they broke contact. They laid together, listening to the sounds of early morning London outside their window.

The Doctor broke the silence first. "I never forgot you. Not once," he said. "Even when I erased all my Time Lord memories, I remembered you in my dreams…"

They laid in bed for hours sharing all that had happened during their separation. He told her about Martha and the Master and Donna while she rubbed his back, and she told him about the dimension cannon and Torchwood and Tony while he stroked her hair and spooned her. Anything that wasn't the bed they were sharing slipped into nothingness as they unfolded for each other the stories of their lives lived apart. Their words shaped the worlds they used to belong to and created the one that they now shared exclusively. Now that there were no crises or aliens to distract them, they were able to be the lovers that they were. They talked and kissed and laughed some more until the sounds of early commuters drifted through their window and, exhausted, they passed out happily in bed.

They awoke in the late afternoon, hungry, but neither wanted to leave their warm nest of sheets and blankets. Rose neither knew nor cared what day it was, and going into work was the last thing on her mind. They lay against each other in comfortable silence until the rumbling of their stomachs forced them to leave the bed and venture to the kitchen in search of food.

The Doctor pulled on the sweatpants as Rose, wearing only his discarded shirt and her boxers, made tea and toast for them. He was able to get a better look at the flat in the daylight, and found that it was rather sparse. He walked to Rose and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Have you just moved in?"

She shook her head and turned to kiss him. "I haven't really had time to get anything after I moved in. Just the essentials. I didn't have anything when I came here, so I didn't have much to move out of the mansion. Mum and I both ended up starting from scratch."

He looked back at the flat. _Furniture shopping_. Now there was a thought that had never crossed his mind. _Furniture shopping with Rose for our flat_. That was new. The thought delighted and terrified him. He cast around for something to think about something other than upcoming domestic tasks.

"Rented or bought?"

"Sorry?"

"The flat. Rented or bought?"

The toast popped up. "Bought," said Rose, spreading butter on one slice. "Pete's idea. He knew I had been looking for a place of my own so he bought it for my birthday. He wanted something a bit grander, but I insisted on this one. Kettle's on."

They took their tea and toast back to bed and watched the small television while they ate. They watched reruns of old comedies until they wiped the crumbs off the bed and the tea was gone. Neither had any idea what time it was, for there were no clocks in Rose's bedroom, a detail that did not escape their notice. The Doctor shut the TV off and they cuddled against each other in bed for what could very well have been days.

The Doctor sat up, startling Rose. "What am I, Rose?"

"Excuse me?" she said, sitting up as well.

"I mean, what am I to you? Am I still the Doctor? Am I John Smith now that I'm human? I mean, I've got a real name that you could call me… They used to call me Thete. That's not my name, though. I was never sure why they called me Thete. I should have asked –"

Rose pressed a finger to his lips. The Doctor mentally cursed himself – he really should stop rambling so much. "The Doctor is my Doctor, and you are the Doctor. I don't care if you've got big ears and a jumper, or specky skin and glasses, or one or two hearts. You are my Doctor. You always will be."

They grinned at each other and sat back against the bed. "Also," added Rose, "I don't care if you become the bleedin' Prime Minister and everyone calls you John Smith or Thete or whatever. You'll always be just plain old 'Doctor' to me."

He smiled again. "You're taking this remarkably well. I was so scared that you wouldn't accept me."

The smile slipped from Rose's face. "So was I. I wasn't sure what to think until the moment the TARDIS left." She flipped over to look at him and cup his chin in her hands. "But you're him. You're here with me, which is something I could never have had before. And I can honestly tell you that this is the first time in a while that I've been truly happy."

They stayed in bed for untold lengths of time and ignored anything that wasn't each other until Jackie nearly banged down their door, claiming she hadn't heard a word from her daughter in nearly a week.

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><p>Drop a review if you feel so inclined and let me know if you want to see more.<p> 


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